Elephants with Guns live at Sounds and Vision

Went to see my friends Elephants with Guns at Sounds and Vision, presented by Cannibal Flower and Venice Grind. Great show, and as always LC put together an amazing mix of pieces in the gallery, live paintings, DJing and live music. I managed a sketch of the band.

elephants with guns at sounds and vision

Red Baraat and La Chamba at FIGat7th Downtown Festival

Joined lots of friends for Red Baraat and La Chamba live at FIGat7th in downtown Los Angeles. What an amazing show! Here are some watercolor sketches from the performance. These ones were painted straight to paper without any pencils, which is fun. The first is of La Chamba and the second is of members of Red Baraat.

la chamba watercolor figat7th

red baraat watercolor figat7th

Yemen Blues at the Levitt Pavilion MacArthur Park

After an important protest in solidarity with Trayvon Martin and the inequality of justice as applied particularly to African Americans in the US, I head over to the Levitt Pavilion in MacArthur Park for a beautiful concert by Yemen Blues. It made me feel great to hear music from all over played and enjoyed by people of all races, as a reminder, that things can be better.

Yemen Blues live at the Levitt Pavilion

Yemen Blues live at the Levitt Pavilion

Las Cafateras at Grand Performances

Hopped on the metro and caught a great noon show by Las Cafateras at Grand Performances. Here's a sketch I created during their performance.

Las Cafaterias at Grand Performances

Metalachi at Levitt Pavilion Macarthur Park

Enjoyed a fun show by Metalachi at Levitt Pavilion in Macarthur Park. They play mariachi metal, and it is really a lot of fun. I managed some sketches of the larger than life musicians. Good times.

Metalachi at Levitt Pavilion Macarthur Park

Adunni and Nefertiti and Martha Redbone at Grand Performances

Dropped by Grand Performances to see Adunni and Neferetiti and Martha Redbone for another show and some painting on saturday. It got a bit cold, so I only stayed through the first two acts, missing Dessy Di Lauro, but it was fantastic. Adunni and Nefertiti came out for a soundcheck about before the show, and immediately they were captivating. Their voices, merged into one along with drumming was mesmerizing. Redbone with their steel guitar, banjo, vocals etc were so full of energy and fun. Here are sketches I made at the show.

Adunni and Nefertiti at Grand Performances watercolor sketch

Martha Redbone at Grand Performances watercolor sketch

Nina Simone Tribute at Grand Performances

I went to a beautiful free concert at Grand Performances in tribute to Nina Simone. It was a great night of classic Nina Simone songs played by a great group of musicians. The entire area was packed with people. My friend and I walked all around to find a good spot throughout the show, and eventually settled on standing with a view of behind the stage. It was actually a good spot, considering the place was so packed. It was an interesting way to enjoy the show. It was from there that I put this little sketch together.

Sketch I created at the show from behind the stage.

Islamic Calligraphy: An Introduction by Aslam Kamal

It was among a stack of dusty books that I lucked out and found Aslam Kamal's Islamic Calligraphy: An Introduction. A few years ago, I was visiting book stores in Lahore as I love to do. Besides newer books, there are lots of treasures to be found in piles of old books. Often, that is where I learn about interesting artists and stories. Art books in Pakistan have very limited print runs as the audience of those who can afford art books and appreciate them is a small one.The book has a good deal of variety when it comes to calligraphy in Arabic script and more. There are pages with ancient examples from earlier forms of Arabic writing in the Quran, to exquisite pieces throughout the ages. Of particular interest to me were the pieces by Sadequain, one of Pakistan's most celebrated artists as well as the beautiful juxtaposition of architecture and calligraphy in the work of Aslam Kamal, the author of the book as well as an incredible artist himself.

Aslam Kamal Islamic Khatati Calligraphy Introduction Book Cover

Aslam Kamal Islamic Khatati Calligraphy Introduction

Aslam Kamal Islamic Khatati Calligraphy Introduction Book. Sadequain art.

It was with this inspiration that I did a series of sketches to come up with a title logo for my short film Gul.

Gul logo sketchbook page

Gul logo sketchbook page

Gul logo sketchbook page

Gul film title logo black

Gul film title logo photoshop

Gul Logo

Animated painted test for the Gul logo.

Malathi Iyengar's Love Trajectory at Grand Performances

I went and Malathi Iyengar's "Love Trajectory" at Grand Performances. Here are some sketches from the night.

Fishtank Ensemble at the Levitt Pavilion

I went over to join the wonderful folks from Art Division, who were creating a community mural. It was fun drawing with artists from Art Division and with them, encouraging little kids to join the fun. Afterwards, I watched Fishtank Ensemble perform at the Levitt Pavilion in MacArthur Park. Summer has begun!

Fishtank Ensemble painted live at the Levitt Pavilion

Fishtank Ensemble painted live at the Levitt Pavilion

Sahara Drawing Workshop

I had the privilege of conducting a drawing workshop for a conversational English class at Sahara. Sahara is a wonderful organization that specializes in helping domestic violence victims in the South Asian community as well as offering classes to the community at large in computers, English and more. Our friend Mala invited Kristeen and I to give a workshop with her class.

For the lesson, I modified a session I had done in Bangalore to suit the conversational needs of these women. I thought we could share stories on moments we were proud of, achievements or other significant events, to help remind us all that we each hold stories worth telling. As I went around the room, and each woman gave her name and how she was feeling, it became clear that there were many stories to tell. Some women were deeply moved by stories on the news, such as the garment factory collapse in Bangladesh, or the brutal violence against a prisoner named Sarabjeet Singh, one of many innocents to inadvertently wander across the border and be imprisoned like so many others on both sides of the border.I drew some simple figures and objects and gave some ideas on how they can be used to express a variety of emotions. With that, the women took to drawing, and I walked around to help encourage or give ideas on how they could use drawing to express a particular idea if they needed it. After drawing, each woman shared their work and spoke to the class about it in english. It was hugely gratifying to feel the warmth and humor of these women, and to get a little glimpse of the depth of thought and wisdom they had to share with the world.Afterwards, one of the wonderful women treated us to some delicious Khandvi and a dish simply called Veggie Delight (Gujrati snacks). Kristeen and I felt humbled and just full of joy at having spent time sharing with these women. Thank you.

Elephants with Guns at the Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles 2013

I checked out a short set with the new lineup of the band Elephants with Guns at the Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles' Rhythm Village, put on by Rukus Avenue. It was a short and powerful set. I can't wait to see a longer set by the band. I managed a few quick sketches of Jayson Joseph and Nikhil Cooper.

Rupa and the April Fishes at the Mint

I went and enjoyed a show by Rupa and the April Fishes at the Mint. Here are some sketches. The one at the end is of a band called Bubbelah, which was a lot of fun too. My friend Robin Sukhadia played tabla with Rupa and the April Fishes on a few songs.

Bubbeleh at the Mint

Robin Sukhadia

Safa Shokrai at the Mint

Rupa

Sheetal Gandhi "I Am You" at the Annenberg Community Beach House

I went to see my friend Sheetal Gandhi perform her new piece "I Am You" at the Annenberg Community Beach House along with Meena Murugesan. Here's a watercolor I did during her wonderful performance.

Encounter at East West Players

Here's a sketch I managed in the dark during the "Encounter" show at East West Players in downtown Los Angeles tonight. 

EWG at Tuesday Night Cafe

I got to see my friends Elephants with Guns perform at the Tuesday Night Cafe, and managed this quick sketch.

Coastal Beauty

Stopped along the coastal highway to take in some of the breath taking beauty on the way to San Francisco. I managed this watercolor while being battered by the wind. My fingers were sore from holding on to the paper by the time I decided to leave, but it was worth it to stop off the highway, and hike down through thick shrubs and flowers to spend some time admiring nature.

Manisha Shahane at the Mint

I had the pleasure of enjoying a short set by Manisha Shahane at the Mint as well as one by Lilli Lewis. Here are sketches of Lilli, Manisha, and Dawn Norfleet who performed with Manisha.

Refugee Nation

I went to a powerful play put on by my friends at Teada, called Refugee Nation. It dealt with the affects of the brutal, 9 year U.S. bombing of Laos on the people there as well as the refugees who came to the U.S. and their children. It is powerful to see the human consequences of the war, which came out to about one full load of bombs dropped from a U.S. plane onto the tiny nation of Laos every 8 minutes for 9 years. That is unimaginable. How do we hold governments accountable for their atrocities? When we do not, they simply continue to violate the security and humanity of nations, as we see with continued violence perpetuated on the people of Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan and so many more.

Elephants with Guns and Silent Water Screening

I managed a few sketches of my friends Elephants with Guns at the Silent Water screening. The set ended before I could finish drawing Sagar or even start Maya.